Todd-Bath Iron Shipbuilding Corp.

National Labor Relations Board - Board Decisions

Dec 15, 1942

45 N.L.R.B. 1367 (N.L.R.B. 1942)

In the Matter of TODD-BATH IRON SHIPBUILDING CORPORATION AND
SOUTH PORTLAND SHIPBUILDING CORPORATION and INDUSTRIAL UNION.
OF MARINE AND SHIPBUILDING WORKERS OF AMERICA, LOCAL 50, C. I. O.
Case No. R-k5419.Decided December 15,194.
Jurisdiction : shipbuilding industry.
Investigation and Certification of Representatives : existence of question : re-
fusal to' accord recognition because of dispute as to appropriate units ; post-
ponement of election pending corporate reorganization into single entity, held
not warranted where plants were operated for all practical purposes as a single
entity ; election necessary.
Unit Appropriate for Collective Bargaining : (1) all hourly paid production and
maintenance employees, including truck drivers, but excluding foremen, assist-
ant foremen, supervisory employees having authority to hire and discharge,
salaried employees, first-aid employees, chauffeurs operating cars and beach
wagons, safety men, counters, timekeepers, office and clerical employees, office
janitors, engineers, draftsmen, architects, fire fighters, guards, and watchmen ;
(2) all guards and watchmen, excluding guard captains and the chief of
guards. .
Drummond cC Drum.mond, by Mr. William B. Mahoney, of Port-
land, Maine, for the Companies.
Grant c0 Ango ff, by Mr. Sidney S. -Grant, of Boston, Mass., for the
C.I.O.
Mr. Alonzo F. Young, of Portland, Maine, for the A. F. L.
Mr. Louis Cokin, of counsel to the Board.
DECISION
AND
DIRECTION OF ELECTIONS
STATEMENT OF THE CASE
'°Upon-petition duly•filed,by:Industrial,.,Union of Marine and Ship-
building Workers of America, Local' 50, C. I. O., herein called the
C. I. 0., alleging that a question affecting commerce had' arisen con-
cerning the representation of employees of Todd-Bath Iron Shipbuild-
ing Corporation and South Portland Shipbuilding Corporation, South
Portland, Maine, herein collectively called the Companies, the National'
Labor Relations Board provided for an appropriate hearing upon due
notice before Robert E. Greene, Trial Examiner. Said hearing was,
45 N. L. R. B., No. 186.
1367
1368 DECISIONS OF NATIONAL LABOR RELATIONS BOARD
held at Portland, Maine, on November 17,1942. At the commencement
of the hearing the Trial Examiner granted a motion of American Fed-
eration of Labor, herein called the A. F. L., to intervene. The Com-
panies, the C. I. 0., and the A. F. I. appeared and participated at the
hearing, and all parties were afforded full opportunity to be heard, to
examine and cross-examine witnesses, and to introduce evidence bear-
ing: on the issues..
During the course of the hearing counsel for the A. F. L. moved to
dismiss the petition. The Trial Examiner reserved ruling. The mo-
tion is hereby denied. The Trial Examiner's rulings made at the,hear-
ingare free from prejudicial error and are hereby affirmed.
Upon the entire record in the case, the Board makes the following'
FINDINGS OF FACT
1. THE BUSINESS OF THE COMPANIES
South Portland Shipbuilding Corporation is a,Maine corporation
with its principal place'of business and plant located at South Port-
land, Maine. It is engaged in construction of cargo ships, for the
United States Maritime Commission. Approximately 95 percent of
the raw materials used by South Portland Shipbuilding Corporation
in its shipbuilding operations are shipped from outside Maine. It
employs approximately 12,500 persons.
Todd-Bath Iron Shipbuilding Corporation is a Maine corporation
with its principal place of business at South Portland, Maine, where
it is engaged in the construction of merchant ships for the United
States Maritime Commission. ' Such ships are'being constructed under
a contract held by the South Portland Shipbuilding Corporation.
Todd-Bath Iron Shipbuilding Corporation employs approximately
• 13,000 persons.
Each of the Companies admits that it isengaged in commerce within
the meaning of the,National Labor Relations Act.,
II. THE ORGANIZATIONS INVOLVED
Industrial Union of Marine 'Ind Shipbuildilg Workers of. America,
Local 50, is a,labor organization, affiliated with the Congress,of Indus-,-
trial Organizations, admitting to membership, employees of the -Com-.
I nies. .
American Federation of Labor is, a labor organization admitting- to
membership employees of the Companies.
TODD-BATH IRON SHIPBUILDING CORPORATION 1369'
III. THE QUESTION CONCERNING REPRESENTATION.
At the hearing in the instant proceeding the A. F. L., the C. I. 0.,
and the Companies differed with respect to the composition of the
bargaining unit.
The parties stipulated at the hearing that the C. I. O. and the
A. F. L. each represents a substantial number of employees of the
Companies.
We find that a question affecting commerce has arisen concerning
the representation of employees of the Companies, within the mean-
ing of Section 9 (c) and Section 2 (6) and (7) of, the National Labor
Relations Act. '
IV. THE APPROPRIATE UNITS -
The A. F. L. and the C. 1. 0. contend that all hourly paid; production
and maintenance employees of the Companies, including truck drivers,
guards, watchmen, checkers, timekeepers, counters,, office and clerical
.employees, office, janitors, engineers, draftsmen, architects, and fire
fighters, but excluding foremen, assistant foremen, supervisory, em-
ployees having the authority to hire and discharge, salaried em-
ployees, first-aid employees, chauffeurs operating cars and beach
wagons, and guard chiefs and captains, constitute a single appropriate
bargaining unit. The only controversy with respect to the unit con-
cerns safety men, counters, timekeepers, guards, watchmen, office and
clerical employees, office janitors, engineers, draftsmen, architects,
and fire fighters. The A. F. L. and the C. I. O. would include all
such employees in the unit and the Companies would exclude them.
The C. I. O. has a closed-shop contract covering employees at the
Todd-Bath yard and the A. F. L. has a closed-shop contract covering
employees at the South Portland yard of the Companies. Safety
men, counters, timekeepers, engineers, draftsmen, architects, fire
fighters, and office janitors are excluded from these contracts. Office
and clerical employees are covered by the South Portland yard con-
tract but are excluded from the Todd-Bath yard contract. Guards
and watchmen are covered by both contracts. The C. I. O. has been
certified by the Board as the exclusive bargaining representative of
the safety- men and the counters' and "timekeepers at the Todd-Bath
yard in two separate bargaining units.
We shall exclude the safety men, counters, and timekeepers from
the unit in the instant proceeding inasmuch as the C. I. O. has been
separately certified as the exclusive representative of such employees
at the Todd-Bath yard and the -work of such employees is dissimilar
to that of the regular production and maintenance employees.
.Our usual practice has been to exclude office and clerical employees
and office janitors from a unit largely composed of production and
maintenance employees. Since no' affirmative showing has been made
1370 DECISIONS OF NATLONAL ' LABOR ' RELATIONS -BOARD
or any compelling-arguments advanced as to why we should depart
from this practice, we shall exclude office and clerical employees and
office janitors from the unit.
The economic interests of technical employees such as draftsmen,
architects, and engineers, and their relation to the Companies are
'usually on an-entirely different plane, than those of the production .
and maintenance employees. Under the circumstances, we shall,
exclude engineers, draftsmen, and architects from the unit.
The fire fighters are stationed throughout the'Companies' premises
and are engaged in fire-fighting activities. Inasmuch as their duties
are dissimilar to those of the production and maintenance employees
we shall exclude fire fighters from the unit.
The guards and watchmen are armed and uniformed. They patrol
the Companies' premises and one of their more important duties is to
prevent sabotage. The guards and watchmen are also United States
Coast Guard- Reservists. Under the circumstances we find that the
guards and watchmen should not be included in the unit with produc-
tion and maintenance employees. However, we find that guards and
watchmen constitute a separate unit appropriate for collective bar-
gaining purposes. -
At the time the Companies entered into separate closed-shop con-
tracts with the C. I. 0. and the A. F. L. covering employees at the
Todd-Bath yard and South Portland yard, the two yards, were
operated as separate entities and were separated by a°wire fence and
a group of dwelling houses. However, at the present time the space
intervening between the two yards has been taken up by the Com-
panies and a new building which will serve both yards is being built
on such space. The Companies at the time of the hearing were
undergoing corporate reorganization and were to become 'a single
entity. Even at the time of the hearing the yards were closely
interrelated through corporate officers and were operated under a
common management. The Companies maintain joint personnel,
clerical and bookkeeping facilities for both yards and the employees
of both yards perform substantially the same work. Under these
circumstances we find that a single unit of employees at the Todd-
Bath and the South Portland yards is appropriate.
We find that all hourly paid production and maintenance employees
of the Companies, including (ruck drivers, but excluding foremen,
assistant foremen, supervisory employees having authority to hire
and discharge, salaried employees, first-aid employees, chauffeurs
operating cars and beach wagons, safety men, counters, timekeepers,
office and clerical employees, office janitors, engineers, draftsmen,
architects, fire fighters, guards, and watchmen constitute a unit
.appropriate for the purposes of collective bargaining ;within the
meaning of Section 9 (b) of the Act.
TODD-BATH IRON SHIPBUILDING CORPORATION 1371
We further find that all guards and watchmen of the Companies,
excluding guard captains and the chief of guards, constitute a unit
appropriate for the purposes of collective bargaining, within the
meaning of Section 9 (b) of the Act.
1'. THE DETERMINATION OF REPRESENTATIVES
The A. F. L. contends that no election should be held among the
employees of the Companies in a single unit until such time as the
corporate reorganization alluded to above is fully accomplished. As
pointed out above, the yards are operated by the Companies for all
practical purposes as a single entity. In light of these facts we shall
direct elections at this time.
We shall direct that the employees eligible to vote in the elections
shall be those within - the appropriate units who were employed
during the pay-roll period immediately preceding the date of the
Direction of Elections herein subject to the limitations and additions
set forth in the Direction.
DIRECTION OF ELECTIONS
-By virtue of and pursuant to'the power vested in the National
Labor' Relations Board by Section 9 (c) of the National Labor Rela-
tions Act, and pursuant to Article III, Section 9, of National Labor
Relations Board Rules and Regulations-Series 2, as amended, it is
hereby
DIRECTED that, as part of the investigation to ascertain representa-
tives for the purposes of collective bargaining with Todd-Bath Iron
Shipbuilding Corporation and South Portland Shipbuilding Corpora-
tion, South Portland, Maine, separate elections by secret ballot shall
be conducted as early as possible, but not later than thirty (30) days
from the date of this Direction, under the direction and supervision
of the Regional Director for the First Region, acting in this matter
as agent for the National Labor Relations Board, and subject to
Article III, Section 10, of said Rules and Regulations, among the
employees in the units found appropriate in Section IV, above, who
were employed during the pay-roll period immediately preceding the
date of this Direction, including employees who did not work during
said pay-roll period because they were ill or on vacation or tem-
porarily laid off, and including employees in the armed forces of
the United States who present themselves in person at the polls,. but
excluding any who have since quit or been discharged for cause, to
determine yti hether they, desire rto be represented by Industrial Union .
of Marine and Shipbuilding Workers of America, Local 50, affiliated
with the Congress of Industrial Organizations, or by American
Federation of Labor, for the purposes of collective bargaining, or by
neither.